Many passengers are most familiar with IATA codes as three-letter airport identifiers, such as LAX—the gateway airport to Los Angeles. Similarly, they recognize two-letter codes associated with their flight numbers.
However, what is less known is the central role IATA codes play in connecting the world of air travel—enabling booking systems, baggage transport, cargo operations and air traffic planning. Take them away and the entire system of air travel stops.
As the industry becomes more digital, there is a growing need for codes, particularly to support a complex, modern retailing environment. These digital codes enable systems to identify and communicate with a host of stakeholders such as airlines, travel agents, Global Distribution Systems (GDSs) and new aggregators.
We spoke with Alan Murray Hayden, Director of Airlines, Airports and Security OCS, to find out how IATA codes are evolving.
Airports codes were first introduced in the 1930s, when air travel began to scale globally. Initially, pilots used two-letter codes from the National Weather Service to identify cities.
However, by the 1960s IATA began introducing codes for airlines, travel agents and GDSs. These codes enabled industry players to interact with one another—much like telephone numbers allow any phone to call another.
The benefit of IATA issuing these codes is that it ensures industry-wide interconnectivity. When different parties issue codes only within their ecosystems, interaction is limited. But when IATA issues codes, all parties can connect.
A good example is when GDSs issue codes to corporations for accessing negotiated rates—these rates are only available through that specific GDS.
IATA codes allow these agencies to offer services on behalf of airlines and process transactions via the Billing and Settlement Plan, bringing important economies to the industry compared to other payment methods.
IATA provides an accreditation process where travel agents worldwide have been coded via the Passenger Agency Program. This provides certainty to the airlines that they are dealing with a network of financially vetted and reliable ‘accredited’ sales agents. At the same time, it allows travel agents to access tailored offerings. In total we have almost 60,000 accredited travel agents, each with their own code.
Today, we have more than 12,000 airport codes, over 100,000 coded travel agents or sellers, and about 3,000 airline codes.
One would expect the industry would move away from codes. But we see the demand growing for more codes and new types.
The first driver is industry growth. Take India as an example. The government recently announced plans to build 50 new airports in the next five years. This comes on top of the close to 90 new airports built in the past 11 years. As these airports come online, they will all need to be allocated new codes. Since January 2024, IATA has issued 14 new airport codes to Indian airports, including Mumbai’s second airport Navi Mumbai International Airport.
Travel is also becoming more intermodal. These codes streamline intermodal operations and allow airlines to sell journeys that extend beyond the airport. Today, we already have codes for 900 railway stations globally.
This leads me to the last and probably most interesting requirement. As we transition to a modern retail environment and airlines extend their offering beyond the aircraft door, they want to connect to car rentals companies or hotels. There is a potential that we will need codes for these entities. We also see the emergence of new entities such major corporate travel buyers. Think major organizations such as Microsoft where they would buy travel directly from airlines for thousands of employees. That is another group of entities that may need codes to transact in this market.
Today, airline retailing is becoming increasingly complex and dynamic. Traditional players like travel agents and GDSs are now joined by new intermediaries, such as aggregators, metasearch companies, large corporates and sellers originating from other verticals such as pure retailers and online banks. At the same time, payment models are shifting, with airlines exploring alternatives to credit cards. Moreover, airlines are expanding their role in the travel journey, offering more than just flights.
To support this transformation, the industry is embracing Modern Airline Retailing and implementing NDC Distribution with Offers & Orders standards. This shift requires a rethink of identification and coding systems to move beyond legacy frameworks. Airlines must be able to create personalized offers based on the identity and profile of the seller involved.
This is where Digital Identity for Distribution (B2B Digital Identity) comes into play. It enables secure identification and authentication of organizations within the travel distribution chain, essentially digitizing IATA codes. With this capability, airlines and suppliers can instantly recognize who they’re interacting with, and tailor dynamic offers accordingly. Stronger identity verification not only enhances personalization but also reduces fraud and ensures end-to-end transaction security.
Yes. In fact, they are integral to airline operations. Baggage is probably the best example. In Switzerland, you can use the SWISS Air Rail product to check your luggage at a local train station for your final destination—rail and air ticket are combined. Location, airline, and baggage agent codes are used to track the bag and ensure it is put on the correct flight.
Codes are also fundamental to the operation of the highly complex cargo industry where airlines, freight forwarders, cargo agents and ground handers interact daily. An accredited IATA cargo agency confirms to airlines that your company is a financially sound and professionally trained freight forwarder business. We have more than 20,000+ accredited cargo agents and intermediaries globally.
It’s the invisible but essential connector in the journey.
There is a significant amount of data behind every code. This data confirms that the entity behind the code is legitimate, in good standing, and compliant with specific standards. That is what gives the market confidence that they are dealing with a trusted entity—and this is the stand-out value of IATA’s codes.
If we look at airlines, for example, we update codes following mergers that result in name changes or new corporate addresses. More importantly, we also check whether an airline’s Air Operator Certificate is up to date, along with other compliance requirements.
On average, we process 17 airline or transport operator codes per month. We recently handled a major transaction in the travel space and updated 42 codes over the past few weeks to reflect the new structure.
Similarly, through the Passenger Agency Program, the codes issued to travel agents are backed by a Know-Your-Customer framework that confirms these agents comply with the criteria for accreditation and retention as an IATA Accredited Agent. Each year, every travel agent must complete the Annual Agency Revalidation, updating key data elements such as ownership, address, VAT number and contact details.
